Floral and Fading
by once-in-a-black-moon
Summary: Summary: She's Berk's most talented shieldmaiden the tribe has ever seen. He used to be the worst son of a chief someone could imagine having. But she loves him anyway and he's always loved her as well.


**1.**

She can spot his unruly mop of auburn hair from a mile away. And she's totally fine with that. Her pace quickens to catch up to him and possibly sneak up on him to jump on his back from behind. Just for fun. She's not afraid she'd hurt him, even in years prior, she wouldn't hesitate to take him by surprise. The only difference now is that he can most definitely hold her up. Practically without breaking a sweat.

Her light, silent tread sneaks through the crowd of Vikings with ease in her worn, fur boots. She's within inches of when she takes her chance and launches her lithe frame at his own lean one. The second she makes contact with his body he's stumbling and loosing balance, and quickly regaining it but not before he's accidentally spun around in a few circles quite ungracefully. She's laughing wholeheartedly the entire time as he's grunting a little before finally he regains the balance he lost and hooks his forearms easily under the bend of her legging-clad knees and legs to securely hold her in place while her arms twist themselves snuggly around his neck.

With a kiss to his cheek and an affectionate squeeze, Astrid chuckles a little before greeting the chief's son. "Hey, Babe."

He continues to walk easily and she spies the corner of his lip quirk up a little before he gently presses the side of his head against her temple fondly. She knows he really likes it when she calls him that. "Good day, Milady."

And there's her own pet name he came up with for her all those years ago.

"So care to enlighten me as to why you thought greeting me by openly harassing me in the middle of the square was today's 'good morning'?" He rhetorically teases her with a playful smirk gracing his features.

Her shoulders rise and fall, shrugging, and his shoulders shake a little under her arms as he chuckles. "Why not? I'd be boring if I came up to you every morning the same way." She states. When he shakes his head, the ends of his hair tickle her face and she can't help but enjoy the feeling. It makes her want to run her hands through it, possibly more than when she braids small strands near the nape of his neck. She notices they're heading towards his home and she quirks an eyebrow even though she knows he can't see her. "Where are we going?"

When his back and shoulders tighten against her torso, she becomes even more curious about their destination.

"Hiccup?"

He sighs but his tread doesn't cease, he continues to walk in the same direction he began in. "To my dad's house."

Slowly her head nods before she leans against him more that before and places her chin silently where his neck and shoulders meet. The next few minutes a filled with only the chatter of the village's people around them and the inhaling and exhaling that comes from the both of them, Hiccup is still a little tense and Astrid knows that when he is, he's worried about something.

So she silently gives him her support by just being there with him and mentally telling him and herself that it'll turn out for the best.

Upon reaching the Haddock residential hut, Astrid disbands from Hiccup's back, but when he sets her down, he doesn't seemed phased by the fact that he had just being carrying one-hundred and twenty pounds of pure muscle half way through their quaint village. He looks back at her warily. "You don't have to be here for this, Astrid. It'll be alright." He urges.

She shakes her head. "You know there's nothing you can do to change my mind, Hiccup. I'm going into that house with you whether you like it or not." Astrid states stubbornly.

Hiccup sighs before nodding his head slightly and turning to reach for the door handle of his home. Once the two of them are inside his house, they're met with the chief of Berk himself: Stoick the Vast. Still standing tall and proud as ever, even with his greying beard and slowly wrinkling face, he smiles down at Hiccup and Astrid. But not in the warmest way this time. He almost looks… sad.

"Astrid." He greets still with that smile spread across his lips.

"You wanted to see me, Dad?" Hiccup asks reluctantly.

Stoick lets out a heavy sigh and she knows that whatever the chief is about to say has weighed heavily on his heart and mind. The chief of the Hooligan tribe rubs one large hand across his face. "Yes, son. I did." He motions for the three of them to sit down at the table on which he, Hiccup, and occasionally Gobber have their dinner.

Once the three of them have sat down with Stoick on one side and Astrid and Hiccup on the opposite, the chief places his clasped hands on the table and leans forward a little.

"This isn't something we're going to be too fond of is it?" Hiccup mutters sardonically.

Stoick shakes his head slowly. "No, it's not, Hiccup. All I need you to do is hear me now and be angry at me later." And with one last sigh, Stoick begins to explain his sudden and solemn demeanor.

"Years ago, your mother and I traveled to our old friends toward the east. They were celebrating the new birth of their daughter and they had hoped it would be possible for us to voyage to the Eastern Isles to celebrate. Of course, Hiccup, you had just been born and we were more than delighted to sail away for a few short weeks. At that time the dragons were peaceful and there hadn't been a raid in weeks. Then we didn't know that they went off to raise their young and it was around the time of Snoggletog. So we headed for the Eastern Isles to congratulate them. There, they were dealing with their own plague. Something in their woods was picking off their guard one by one and no one knew what it was. All they knew was that every morning, the victim's body was found so badly mauled and destroyed it was hard for kin to tell who it was. When we arrived, the plague was at its height and more than five bodies were being found maimed and demolished in the woods. Their king and I set out into the woods to hunt this creature and kill it once and for all." Stoick paused for a second and sighed. "We tracked it for days and nights. And when we finally found the devil, it was a sight to behold. It held a young lad's neck between its enormous teeth with his blood still oozing from his neck. I can still see his face, frozen in fear. Lost. It took a number of my men and his to kill the thing, but we managed. It was stronger than twenty dragons at least, and I feared we may not have conquered it, but after what felt like days, we managed to. It was our vikings' fierce bravery and the galloglasses' perseverance to kill their plague and the loss we all suffered that bonded us and made us allies."

Out of the corner of her eye, Astrid sees Hiccup shift uneasily on his end of the wooden bench and purse his lips together into a thin line. "An-and what does that have to do with me, Dad?"

After closing his eyes for a moment and taking a few breaths, Stoick opens his eyes and looks his son dead in the eyes. "Their kingdom has fallen, Hiccup. The Eastern Isles have been taken over by unknown soldiers that wear masks of animal skulls. They wield weapons made of a metal stronger than iron and steel." He pauses. "Their king has humbly asked if they can sail to Berk and unify both peoples and I told them we'd welcome them."

"Chief, they're going to have to be willing to compromise with our ways of life." Astrid speaks.

Their dragons. Dragons have become a major part of the people of Berk's lifestyle. Their dragons are family and more than just a perk of living on the island of Berk. After some time getting used to dragons roaming around the vikings have accepted the dragons as their own and vice versa. She couldn't think of any other way to start her morning then having Stormfly being the second face she sees when she starts her day.

"Yeah, Dad, it's been three years since we accepted the dragons into our society as a whole, and we're all still adjusting to the change. With new members of our tribe, we're going to have to start pretty far back." Hiccup concurs.

Stoick nods his head agreeing. "You're both right. And yes, this will take time, but hopefully, the galloglasses will quickly come to understand that our dragons are now a necessity in our lives."

Hiccup's eyes grow wide and get that twinkle she's come to know as the twinkle that means he's got another Hiccup Plan. "We could train them to cope with the dragons."

"Hiccup's right. We know everything there is to know about those dragons. Who better to train people to train dragons than us?" Astrid chimes.

"I wouldn't ask anyone else, Lass." Stoick smiles. But she still saw the sadness that smile held. Just as soon as she is about to voice her concern, the chief looks down at his still clasped hands resting tensely on the table's surface. "Besides, it will give Hiccup and their daughter a great deal of bonding time."

Both pairs of eyes zero in on Hiccup's dad. Astrid and Hiccup exchange wary but nervous looks with each other.

"What do you mean by that, Dad?" Hiccup asks low and slow. The happy, excited twinkle is not gone.

Silence. Hiccup and Astrid are still waiting anxiously for the chief's answer when she feels Hiccup's hand firmly grasp hers and she gives it a reassuring squeeze.

"They want you to marry their daughter as a symbol of unity."

Hiccup's mouth opens to protest, but he is silenced by Stoick's voice once more.

"She was born not long after you were and only a few months before Astrid had been birthed. If I had known that Embla would have given birth to Astrid, I would have never made this promise. The promise that you were to be married the day that we would seek to unify the two peoples. And over time, due very little contact, I had forgotten. Dragon raids. Your mother going missing. Raising you. Leading our tribe. Providing for us." And he sighs again. "I'm sorry, Hiccup, I know-"

"You know I won't do that. I can't." Hiccup states firmly.

But she understands. As a chief's son, he's expected to do what's best for the tribe. If marrying the king's daughter cements a strong, trusting alliance with the galloglasses, then it's his duty to marry the daughter of their leader. Even if it means he has to leave Astrid.

"Hiccup, as the son of the chief, you have expectations. Duties. Unfortunately, this is one of those." She hears herself saying.

He turns his head and looks at her disbelievingly. "Astrid-"

She slowly untwines their clasped hands and places them in her lap, fisted. "You can't ignore a safe, sturdy alliance, Hiccup. If you marrying the galloglass' daughter ensures that you need to marry her. It'll make Berk even stronger and keep the peace." She reasons.

Green bores into blue. And in his gaze, she sees hurt, she sees frustration and anger, but most of all she sees something that she can only define as…betrayal. But she silently begs him to understand she still cares for him; that she still loves him.

Without a word, Hiccup gets up from the table and silently leaves them both sitting at the table.

After another long moment of silence, she hears her chief speak once more. "I'm sorry, Astrid. You've turned into a fine, respectable, young lass. And you're one hell of a soldier."

She gazes up at Stoick. His blue eyes scream sorrow and beg for understanding. And she does understand. She's not mad at Stoick. Astrid's only sorry she's losing her best friend to someone he can't even remember. What saddens her more is that she'll now be going home to an empty house. Without her parents, Ruffnut, Tuffnut, Heather, Fishlegs, Reya, Snotlout, and especially Hiccup have become more and more like family every day. Ruff, Heather, and Reya are the sisters she's never had and Tuff, Fishlegs, and Snotlout are the obnoxious, older brothers she knows she loves deep, deep down. Like _deep_ down for Snotlout. And Hiccup infinitely changed her life for the better. He's her best friend and something more that she still can't put into words. All she knows is that he means so much to her and it would wound her internally if something ever happened to him. Not that she would say anything. Astrid knows it's dangerous for a warrior to feel so much.

With her own sad smile, Astrid stands, gently places her hand on Stoick's still tightly clasped hands to show him she understands, gives him the faintest, sad smile she's ever mustered and walks out of the chief's hut without another word.

When she's out of the tense hut, she sighs. Hiccup is nowhere in sight and in every direction she looks, messy, dark red hair is nowhere to be seen. She makes her way to her house and is surprised to see the very person she desired to see waiting for her by the dead fire as he glares at the ashes that are as dark as Toothless' scales. A few feet away sits the very night fury with the scales that are as black as onyx. He looks worried for his master and as his green eyes look up to his best friend's mate, she sees nothing but concern and worry. Silently, Astrid slides down onto the floor beside him and joins him mutely starring into the black ash.

"We could leave, you know." His voice is quiet, a little joking, but still hopeful.

"Hiccup, where could we go?" She counters.

He doesn't answer her, not that she expected him to. They sit in silence, for how long she doesn't know. All she knows is he breaks the tense void.

"I know you're trying to think of the tribe first, Astrid."

She slowly nods her head. "So should you, Hiccup."

"But, I need _you_ by my side when I become chief." He confesses. "No one will ever know this island like you do. No one understands me like you can. No one could put together perfect, successful strategies like you do, Astrid. Not one person could ever come close to you. As chief, I'm responsible to provide, guide, and protect my tribe. But there's no way in Hel that I could do that without you. I-"

"Hiccup, you make it sound like I've been sentenced to sail off the edge of the earth." Astrid tries to joke, but Hiccup's face remains serious.

"That's because if you're not by my side when it's time for me to lead these people. I can't picture anyone but you by my side." Hiccup says sincerely. "Astrid, I can't imagine a life without you in it."

"There's no one I would rather have stand by my side for the rest of my life than you, Hiccup." Astrid tells him and he takes her hand in his once more. "But a chief protects his own." She quotes. "And if you marry this girl to make our alliances stronger, you protect us all."

"There will always be a Hiccup and Astrid." Hiccup promises.

Now their foreheads are pressed up against each other and their eyes flutter shut with both of their hands intertwined with the other's. He captures her bottom lip between his and she doesn't hesitate to suck on his top lip eagerly. His hands slowly fall to her waist and stay there respectively as her own arms wind around his neck and shoulders to pull him closer, both opening their mouths to deepen their kiss.

So consumed with their soon to be precious time together, neither hear their own front door open to present Fishlegs and Heather with their two friends wrapped in each other immersed. Toothless sits up straighter instantly to see who the intruders' identity is but is no longer too threatened when he recognizes Fishlegs entering Astrid's hut.

Fishlegs clears his throat and Hiccup and Astrid jump away from each other so far it looks like they burned each other. And not in a goof way. The looks of embarrassment and surprise overcome the chief's son and the shieldmaiden as he reaches behind his head to scratch his neck in a nervous gesture while Astrid rubs her left arm shyly.

"Good to see we've attained your attention." Fishlegs muses.

"Gee, thanks." Hiccup mumbles sarcastically.

Astrid clears her own throat a little and forces herself to make proper eye contact with Fishlegs. "So, what brought you by?"

"First I heard that we're having new residents on our island." Fishlegs states trying to ease the awkward tension ."But then we saw Hiccup storming into you guy's hut and got a little curious."

"Oh great." Hiccup mumbles with his usual tone of sarcasm. Astrid and Hiccup look up at Heather and sigh simultaneously. "Sit and we'll explain." Hiccup mumbles.

After listening intently to Hiccup and Astrid explain their predicament (leaving out the fact that Hiccup is to marry a complete stranger), Fishlegs' eyes go wide.

"That explains the sudden preparations for new arrivals are taking place so soon." Fishlegs explains. "Gobber, Bucket, and Mulch have actually managed convinced the twins and Snotlout to help out with the building of a few new homes. That explains why. They need Barf and Belch to build the homes faster and Hookfang to collect the lumber and cut down trees. How they're getting the three of them to do it without screwing it up yet astounds me."

"Isn't Heather down there with them?" Astrid asks.

Fishlegs shakes his head. "Nobody's seen Windshear today and Heather wasn't in her hut when I went to check up on her this morning." Fishlegs explains.

Hiccup raises an eyebrow. "Well, she has been known to thrive at night. I've seen her take Windshear out for a little practice before, but she's usually back by morning."

A knock on the door causes everyone to turn their heads. Astrid stood to answer the door to reveal a tired looking Heather.

"Heather, where in Thor's name have you been?" Astrid asks immediately. If anything bothered Astrid more than losing the only family she has left, it's not knowing if they're safe.

When the dragon riders reunited with Heather, they found she had grown up just like the rest of them. Gone was the shy, sheepish Heather they knew when they were kids. Instead, she had stood before them fierce and relentless.

A chuckle leaves Heather's lips. "What no 'hello'? Just where the Hel have you been?"

Astrid rolls her eyes. "You know what I mean, Heather."

"Well, I went out to for a quick spin when I heard we were having visitors? Then I saw Ruff, Tuff, and Snotlout clearing trees with a bunch of others while new houses were being built like crazy. So anything I need to know about?" Heather asks.

"We're, ah, having permanent guests." Fishlegs explains.

Heather raises a brow questioningly. "That means…" She leaves the air silent for one of them to answer.

"A clan of galloglasses are heading to Berk to escape warriors that don masks made of animal skulls. Their island was lost and their leader reached out to Berk as old friends to seek a place to move on. My dad," He pauses before her reluctantly adds, "Accepted."

"So in a sense, the chief is unifying the tribe with a clan. That means there has to be some kind of official unifying symbol, right?"

Hiccup nods his head and sighs as a curious Fishlegs turns face his longtime friend. Easily, Fishlegs puts together the obvious and his face falls. "Hiccup, Astrid…"

It only takes Fishlegs to say both their names in a concerned tone for Heather to understand what's happened to their unfortunate friends.

"Oh my Thor. You… You have to marry the galloglasses' king's daughter." Heather realizes as her eyes fall to the chief's son.

Hiccup and Astrid nod their head, reluctantly and sadly.

"Surely there's someone, _anyone_ that can take your place, Hiccup." Fishlegs reasons. "What about Snotlout? He's technically your cousin and if something happens to you and Stoick, he leads the tribe."

"He won't do it." Astrid states monotonously.

"What? Of course he will. Snotlout's ego is bigger than a typhoomorang." Fishlegs reasons.

"But over the years, he's matured. Snotlout genuinely cares for Ruff more than he cares for his ego, Fishlegs." Heather points out.

Silence falls over the four.

"Maybe the king and the chief can work something else out to unify the tribes?" Fishlegs suggests uncertainly.

"No, the king was very adamant on unifying the tribes the traditional way." Hiccup points out.

"Traditional?" Heather questions. "Hasn't tradition changed a lot around here recently? Speaking of which, if we will be having new recruits around here, they're going to need to be willing to compromise. I'm not throwing Windshear to the gods just because some new men aren't willing to give her a one look and flee for their sorry lives. I've cared for her since her hatchling, and besides she won't leave without me."

"We know. My dad already stands by our side on that decision. Our dragons stay. Regardless of the galloglasses' wishes. Adding to that, we all know none of our dragons would – _could_ – live without us." Hiccup says.

Of all the dragon riders, Hiccup and Toothless are nothing if inseparable. They need each other like a heard needs a leader.

"What about you two?" Heather asks. "What does he say about you two?"

Hiccup and Astrid exchange looks. Green looks almost helpless, while blue radiates sadness.

"We don't have a choice." Astrid mumbles.

"But you do." Fishlegs tells them.

"And what choice would that be, Fishlegs?" Hiccup asks not breaking eye contact with Astrid.

"You… You could leave."

Hiccup and Astrid look surprisingly at Fishlegs. Next to Astrid, Fishlegs understands the insane amount of responsibility a chief and his son possess. He knows how leaving would look but, Fishlegs understands Hiccup and Astrid share a bond no one can put into words.

"Fishlegs, you know we can't just get up and leave. We all have duties on Berk. And under no circumstances can we just leave those responsibilities behind us." Astrid reasons. "Besides, if we left, we stick Snotlout and Ruffnut in the same situation. And believe me, no one wants to be in our situation."

"Astrid's right." Hiccup agrees remorsefully. "There's nothing we can do to fix this. And if there was a way without bloodshed, we'd do it."

The rest frown sorrowfully but nod their heads dutifully and understandingly.

With yet another sigh, Hiccup tears his stare away from Astrid. "Saddle up. It's time for morning patrols."

They part ways with Fishlegs and Heather heading towards the docks while Astrid and Hiccup head around Astrid's hut to where she keeps Stormfly as Toothless follows Hiccup closely.

As Astrid saddles up Stormfly, she notices Hiccup's pursed lips and unusual muteness. Once she has Stormfly ready to go, she walks over to Toothless' side and places her hand on Hiccup's armor clad arm. When he turns to face her he's greeted with a faint smile. _'We can get through this.'_ It seemed to say. So when she leans in to kiss his cheek, he captures her lips once more, but only for a brief moment. And with a faint smile of his own, Astrid mounts Stormfly, pats her side affectionately, and the duo takes off with two, steady wingbeats coming from the night fury and the deadly nadder as they begin yet another flight to patrol the island.

* * *

Four months later, alien ships could be seen on the horizon.

Hiccup and Astrid are sitting contently under the shade of one of the forest trees with her head resting peacefully on his collarbone and her hand once again clasped in his securely as he rests his back up against the thick trunk of the tree that provides the welcoming shadow of shade.. Toothless and Stormfly play gleefully in one of the open, tree barren parts of Berk's forest as Hiccup and Astrid savor their time they have so little of.

She shifts her hand up to the nape of his neck and gentle caresses one of the few braids she has taken the time to braid intricately into Hiccup's long, growing, auburn hair.

"You know, you're probably going to have to take these out soon." She jokes, but her voice holds no trace of humor.

Hiccup smiles a little but before he can say anything in return, loud wingbeats can be heard over head. Soon, a large, fiery-red Monstrous Nightmare lands in the clearing a few meters away from where Toothless and Stormfly play. A stocky figure dismounts from the slender neck of the vicious looking dragon and makes his way over to the two vikings sitting under the tree's luxurious shade.

Snotlout Jorgenson stands at about five foot eleven with a sturdy frame and sleek black hair that sprouts from underneath his viking helmet that contrast with his blue eyes. Over the years, Snotlout has mellowed out and he and Hiccup have come to a mutual respect in their relationship. Their relationship is much more improved now that they've grown together more.

"The boats were just spotted off the horizon when Heather and the twins were out helping Bucket and Mulch bring in the fish." Snotlout informs in a vaguely remorseful tone. "The chief wanted me to tell you guys to meet the riders at the docks."

After nodding slowly, Hiccup stands and offers his hand to Astrid. "Milady?"

Grinning up at him, she takes his hand and he helps up like he's always done. When he pulls her up, she takes the last opportunity to kiss him and wrap her arms tightly around his neck and hold him close while he holds her tightly as they share one last kiss. After breaking apart reluctantly, Hiccup and Astrid exchange a sad smile before mounting their dragons and flying towards the docks, their hearts beating wildly and their emotions beaten and bruised, with Snotlout ahead of them.

"You know, you'll still become General Hofferson, the best Berk has ever seen." Hiccup mentions to her on their flight back.

She smiles over at him a little. "You think so?"

He shrugs with a quirk of his lips. "I know."

By the time he says those two simple words, the Great Hall is in sight and with one last, longing look at each other, Hiccup and Astrid land Toothless and Stormfly next to Hookfang, Meatlug, Windshear, Grump, Skullcrusher, and Barf and Belch along with various other dragons belonging to the vikings of the village.

After descending the stairs that lead to the docks, Hiccup meets his father at the bottom of the wooden landing and the chief looks down at him with a pained face. Placing his hand gently on Hiccup's shoulder, Stoick squeezes his son's small armor clad shoulder in his large hand. Over the last four months, Hiccup slowly began to accept that his father was only trying to provide for the people of Berk and he never meant to make Hiccup unhappy by marrying him off to a king's daughter. But Hiccup understands that had Stoick known Astrid was to be born soon, he would have never promised him to another. "Ready?" Stoick asks lowly.

Hiccup looks up at his father and gives him a weak smile. "Never."

The foreign ships dock and the vikings help the galloglasses with tying their ships securely to the docks of Berk, The king is the first to exit the biggest boat.

A large, burly man dressed in wool and furs with bright, red hair and a mustache, but no beard, stands before Stoick at about the same height. The two leaders look a quite similar, but Stoick is clad in much more armor than the king is.

"Stoick the Vast, we canno' thank ye enough for allowin' us a place that we can now call home. From this day, our clans are as one, we 'ill thrive t'gether and we 'ill prosper far more abundantly t'gether than we ever did apart." The kind sticks his hand out for the viking chief to shake, symbolizing the start of a new life for both people groups.

"Welcome to Berk, King Fergus." Stoick greets grasping his hand with Fergus'. "We're glad to gain such strong allies and we, the Hairy Hooligans, are honored to merge together to work as one."

Cheering can be heard from the boats, while the vikings on land salute the new union. Even the riders who have tried not to take the severed relationship between their leader and their second in command personally weakly salute the union.

King Fergus smiles gratefully as Stoick lowers his head as a gesture of respect. "Now, if ye don' mind, I'd like to introduce ma daughter to yer young lad here." He says nodding his head in Hiccup's direction who glances over to Astrid. For a moment their eyes lock like have so many times, and she nods her head encouragingly. Before he turns his head to greet the princess, he sees Heather place a comforting hand on one of the gronckle iron plates that guard Astrid's shoulder.

"Stoick the Vast and Hiccup the Useless," Fergus says breaking Hiccup's gaze with Astrid.

'Thank you for using the name that makes me want to go straight to Hel.' Hiccup thinks sarcastically. 'Besides, have I not outlived that name by now?'

"I present the eldest heir to the throne of Dunbroch, My daughter, Merida."

A lithe, slender girl makes her way down the wooden plank and onto the docks. She's dressed in such deviating attire than the dragon riders. The forest, green dress falls down to her feet and seems to wisp along the old dock like the wind kisses the water's suface. Her sleeves cover the entirety of both her arms while the dress' collar dips slightly and her own fiery, bright hair, the very image of her father's, is tied up into an elegant updo that must have taken hours. A small, golden crown rests at the front of her head. Her eyes are sky blue and she wears a nervous yet somewhat forced smile grazes her lips. When she walks, a light click-clack sound that can be heard by those on the dock. Probably from her shoes, if Astrid had to guess.

Once she's reached chief and the king, Hiccup is brought forth to come face to face with Merida Dunbroch. His tall, lean six foot one frame is at least half ahead taller than her petite physique. He awkwardly rubs the back of his neck and avoids her stare by continuing to rub the base of his neck in an anxious sort of way.

Then his opposite hand is taken into his father's and so is one of hers. They are then raised into the air as Stoick's voice booms through the silence. "The House of Haddock and the family of Dunbroch are to be united by the end of two weeks' time." He announces. Once his announcement has been heard, Stoick drops the hands of both heirs. "For now, we will show you to your new home and feast."

More cheering erupts from both crowd as the vikings move to help the galloglasses carry crates and sacks to the mainland. Astrid's eyes follow the daughter of the king as she studies her carefully. The way she moves insists she's uncomfortable. The princess's eyes dart around to take in her surroundings anxiously and her bottom lip continues to be worried by her teeth. She's broken out of her close study of Princess Merida when she feels a comforting hand grasp her wrist and finds Hiccup standing in front of her.

"You know, I knew any better I'd think that look on your face means you're jealous." Hiccup jokes weakly.

Her eyes roll and she wants to playfully punch him in the chest or something of the sort but she knows she can't. For the past four months, the village has been convinced that Hiccup and Astrid's relationship consisted of only friendship and since most villagers know that Astrid's playful punches are normally followed by a kiss, she knows not to risk it. She wouldn't want to be accused of treason on the day the galloglasses arrive. Instead she stands there mirroring Hiccup's weak smile on his lips with her own. "Come on, let's go see how they react to the dragons."

Their heavy steps fall into sync with each other as the tips of their fingers lightly brush each other's as they walked in silence. When they reach the clearing where the riders were to meet to begin their performance, the scene before them causes both their eyes to widen,

The other riders have already mounted their dragons and taken to the air. All but three. Originally, the riders were instructed to perform a welcoming ceremony to show the dragons are not to be feared and can be graceful, majestic creatures. But just Astrid and Hiccup's luck, something has gone wrong. Stormfly and Toothless have taken stance to defend the dragon between them. Protected by Stormfly and Toothless, Snotlout kneels beside Hookfang who has a thick arrow protruding from his left back leg. The other riders land and promptly dismount their dragons and come to aid Snotlout as Hiccup and Astrid run toward the injured dragon.

"Who is responsible for this?" Stoick's voice booms causing the crowd to fall silent momentarily.

Soon murmuring erupts from the group of galloglasses. The chief of the Hooligan tribe is not one to anger and many people across the Archipelago know quite well.

When no one confesses, Stoick's face grows even more serious. "I understand that many of you are going through new changes. But I cannot let this happen again." He says gesturing to Hookfang and the riders crowding around him doing everything they can to help the bleeding stop. "Here on Berk, these dragons are a part of our everyday lives. We understand trying to live with new changes, especially these changes. But you must learn to understand that these dragons are not pets. They are companions. And you will be learning to live with them as well as we do. My son and the Riders of Berk will be teaching you on a daily basis. And I do expect you to learn. Otherwise, we may have more conflict with each other than we wish."

When Astrid looks up from the deep wound in Hookfang's leg, Shecatches sight of a nervously fidgeting man towards the middle of the crowd covered in blue war paint. Her eyes narrow dangerously in his direction.

Hookfang lets out a painful howl before Snotlout gently lifts his dragon's head to rest on his lap as he carefully pets Hookfang's snout and begins to whisper comfortingly to him. Hiccup and Fishlegs are diagnosing the wound from where Fishlegs and Ruffnut have carefully pried the arrow out of the swollen flesh. Now Tuffnut, Heather, and Astrid hold the monstrous nightmare's leg as still as possible for Hiccup and Fishlegs to come to a conclusion as to how they should treat it.

"We got the bleeding to slow down a little, Snotlout. But we're going to need to start wrapping. Dad, will you tell Gobber we need some dragon wrap?" Hiccup asks his dad.

The chief nods dutifully and makes a motion to the village's blacksmith. While the chief talks with Gobber, The newcomers watch intently as the riders care for the wounded dragon like they would care for one of their trusted hunting dogs.

"You know, maybe this will show them that they're more than what other perceive them to be." Fishlegs suggests. "It's equivalent to wounding one of their hunters or their horses."

"It depends on how they see it, Fishface. They _could_ see this as a giant reptile that they can kill and roast later." Ruffnut grumbles.

"Ruff, we can't afford to be that pessimistic right now." Hiccup firmly insists as Gobber returns with a roll of thick bandage. He kneels beside Fishlegs and Hiccup as the two begin to wrap the gauze-like cloth around the gaping hole embedded in the red scales of the monstrous nightmare.

"Astrid, come here and apply some more pressure to Hookfang's wound. Maybe it'll stop the blood flow and begin to clot." Fishlegs instructs.

Stooping closer to the ground, Astrid gently began to apply pressure to the dragon's wound. After a few tense minutes, the bleeding begins to slow even more, signifying that the gash has begun to finally clot. "It's clotting." She announces with relief.

A smile spreads across the riders' faces as they all let out a breath none of them knew they were holding.

"That's great!" Fishlegs cheers, but his face soon falls a little. "Uh, Snotlout, can you see if you can get Hookfang to stand?"

Snotlout nods his head stiffly. He begins to whisper and encourage Hookfang who gives him a pitiful look. Snotlout offers him a reassuring smile. "Come on, Hooky, just try it for me?" He coaxes quietly.

A soft groan comes from the dragon before he seems to reluctantly make a move to stand. However, as soon as pressure is placed on Hookfang's leg, he collapses with another painful moan.

Hiccup and Fishlegs' eyes meet Snotlout's instantly and he shakes her head dully.

"Great." Astrid hears Hiccup grumble under his breath sarcastically. "We're down one rider on patrol. Not to mention all of our plans to teach these dicks to ride a dragon have to be altered now." She knows Hiccup is beyond anger. He only swears when he's far further than pissed.

The chief nods his head and proceeds to show the newcomers their dwellings and their new way of life, taking their attention off the scene before them.

Once they were sure that Hookfang had calmed down, Windshear, Barf and Belch, and Meatlug slowly hoist him into the air to be taken to Gobber's for further inspection and treatment.

When the four dragons were out of sight, Astrid places a hand on Hiccup's shoulder as a gesture for comfort. He sighs, sounding completely defeated already.

"Day one, and we're already down a dragon." He grumbles. "That not only throws off patrol, but training as well. Without one dragon, an entire formation is off.." He takes a deep breath but remains tense.

"He'll heal in no time, Hiccup." Astrid says. "Besides, he won't be grounded for long, at least not one of the three arrows got pierced his wings or tail."

Hiccup nods his head slowly, but agreeing. "That's the only upside. Snotlout will resent every member of those galloglasses for the time being. Not only will he resent them, but others will as well." She can see him suppress another defeated sigh. "Training may be much harder than we anticipated."

She offers him a small smile. "Hiccup, we can do this. If you changed the most stubborn vikings' view on dragons, you can change the minds of the galloglasses. It'll take time, but we can teach them that the dragons are like family for a reason. And if anyone can lead us to our goal it's you, Mr. Dragon Conqueror." She teases.

He whips around and faces her with a smirk on his lips. "Well then, Milady, let's start by seeing how our favorite monstrous nightmare is fairing."

Suddenly she's grabbed by the waist and pull towards Hiccup as he kisses her soundly on the lips once again.

She pulls away and they share another sad smile, but makes no move to break their embrace. Instead she rests her hands on both of his upper arms before giving the lean muscle there a small squeeze. "We'd better actually go see how the healing is going. And we probably should stop _this_."

After starring at her with a sad expression and pursed lips, Hiccup begrudgingly nods his head and lets her go before they begin to make their way to Gobber's.

Fortunately for the riders, Hookfang should be good as new in at least four days. Hiccup instructs the riders to meet at the break of dawn to prepare for patrol and plan for their first day of training the galloglasses after the riders finished feeding (while also complaining about the galloglasses). But soon, the seven part ways, and Hiccup and Astrid make their way back towards Astrid's home in comfortable silence. On their way they pass a few familiar faces and some unfamiliar faces.

"That's going to take some time to get used to." Hiccup whispers mostly to himself as they reach Astrid's quiet home.

She chuckles a little before looking around and quickly leaning in to peck Hiccup's cheek. "Last one." She promises as a whisper into his ear.

When she pulls back Hiccup's smile lights up his face. "Good night, Milady." He bids playfully.

With a shake of her head and a roll of her eyes, she opens and shuts the front door to her humble home. After shutting the door with a soft click, Astrid rests her head against the worn wood of the door and wills herself not to scream. Or wore, cry. Over the span of a few months without Hiccup's presence in her small home, Astrid knows it doesn't feel quite like… well, home.

"Oh, yer, home." Comes an unfamiliar voice.

Astrid's natural defense kicks in instantly and she's herself armed with her axe in under the three seconds it took her to turn around. She spots where the voice comes from and tightens her grip on the handle of her axe. At the peak of her wooden stairs, stands a figure clad in green with untamed, curly red hair. Astrid recognizes her immediately. She's the king's daughter, the future chieftess of Berk. Merida DunBroch. Why in Odin's name is she in her home? In _their_ home?

Merida's eyes widen in shock at the sight of Astrid's axe, but she remains calm and composed.

"What are you doing here?" Astrid asks with a raised eyebrow.

"The chief said this is where I'd be stayin'." Merida informs. "He told ma' dad that his best shieldmaiden stays here and he thinks we'd get along jus' great." Merida offers her a small, nervous smile. "I'm Merida."

Lowering her weapon, Astrid studies the princess carefully. She doesn't stand as poised as the queen did and the threadbarren dress she wears means that she's probably spent hours wearing that same dress that also possesses a few mended holes. The princess has forgone the crown and her hair is no longer pinned up high atop her head. The shieldmaiden sighs internally. "Astrid." And with that, she moves to build the fire that warms her home at night in the late fall and the winter.

After a few moments of silence, Astrid listens to Merida retreat up the stairs.

Thor help her, this was _definitely_ going to take some time to get used to.

* * *

 **AN: Okay, this is my first fanfic. I really hope you guys enjoyed this first chapter and by all means please feel free to criticize me in the reviews to better my writing. I do hope to hear positive feedback and I also hope you guys stay tuned for the rest! Please let me know if any character is OOC or anything like that. See you in the next chapter!**

 **\- Black Moon.**


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